Everyday I hear from coaches how very challenging it is to find and attract ideal clients to your coaching business. You say, "I know my ideal client but I just can't seem to find them."  I promise your ideal clients are out there. They are waiting to hear your message and they can only hear your worthwhile message from you. The truth is — when you don't know what you don't know about your ideal client, it smacks and truly hurts your marketing efforts and ultimately keeps your bottom line profits from growing.

Let me tell you why what you don't know about your ideal client is so dangerous:

1. You work with anyone who comes your way. Why, because you're attracting someone, anybody, everybody, all, people and groups of  people who aren't specifically ideally served by your coaching programs and services. Those general descriptions of your ideal client are off limits if you want to find your sweet spot and love the client you serve. As the expression goes, "If you don't stand for something, you'll fall for anything." I know that's tough to hear but it's SO VERY TRUE!
2. You dilute your marketing efforts, spend more money and waste lots of time marketing to groups filled with lots of people that are not necessarily your ideal client. Group descriptions of your ideal client (like entrepreneurs, solo-preneurs, small business owners) don't give you enough detail about your ideal client. Start there, then dive deep for more information about your ideal client. You want to know intimate details about who your ideal client is in order to have the marketing conversation. You may feel this level of clarity somehow limits your attraction. Not so! If your ideal client is a woman, it doesn't mean you won't attract men to your coaching programs and services. Instead, you'll have men with whom your message resonates in equally powerful ways. That's exactly what you want, right?
3. You're frustrated by the clients you serve. It's because fundamentally your values are out of sync. They aren't ideal clients!  Remember, your ideal client is ALWAYS ready, willing and able to invest in your services. This doesn't mean you won't encounter objections. Instead, you'll make a tremendous and necessary shift in your thinking about how your ideal client shows up to work with you. You'll also have a greater understanding about the level of investment she is willing to make.  Isn't it time to stop struggling with clients who aren't ready to truly make a commitment in themselves (let alone commit to you and your services)?

In my newest product, Boost Your Income with Ideal Client Clarity, you'll get to know your ideal client intimately well. You'll specify demographics and psycho graphics that help you understand what to say to your ideal client in your marketing conversation. You'll define your ideal client's experience so you know how you can truly serve her via your coaching, blogging, speaking, social networking and more. You'll see the impact on your ability to find, attract and enroll ideal clients into your coaching business.

You'll know what you know about your ideal client so you can boost your income and serve lots of ideal clients, really well.

How well do you know your ideal client?

I looked up the word compelling in the dictionary and discovered it means "to have a powerful and irresistible effect or influence."  Wow, that's very kewl especially when you think of the kind of marketing conversations you have on a daily, weekly and monthly basis.  It boils down to how powerful, irresistible or influential you can be, right?

Imagine sitting down in your living room with your ideal client. The two of you are enjoying an amazing conversation about what's keeping her up at night and how that problem is affecting her business. You're listening and caring with the utmost compassion. You relate to her experience because in some ways you've had similar experiences in your business. You continue listening with interest and professional objectivity. You ask her permission to invite her to look at things a little differently, knowing that it takes just one tiny step to alleviate that problem from her life and business. You encourage her to be courageous knowing that it represents genuine relief for your client. You challenge her and let her know you're there to support her in every step.

She taps into the opportunities you reveal and wants to continue the conversation (i.e., invest in your coaching). She knows you can help rid her life and business of the problem plaguing her. The reasons are very simple:

1. Connection - You began the conversation by building a bond of respect and genuine concern.  You continued that bond throughout the entire conversation by caring, listening and sharing. You invited her to accept the support you offered her and she accepted.
2. Value - You mapped out one small act of courage that would truly help her. You gave her a tip, tool, resource or strategy that she found gave her immediate relief. You gave her a glimpse into just how easy it is to take more steps and achieve bigger results.
3. Challenge - You believed in her ability to play a bigger game. You gave her the experience of playing bigger with a gentle, trusting nudge and she liked it! You know it's not being a "Yes Woman."  Instead you had faith in your client because of the great potential she had/has to remedy any obstacle in her life. You stood as her accountability partner, supporting her every move.

Now, that's a compelling marketing conversation/message — one that you can have in your emails, social media updates, blog posts, sales letters and more. Practice being authentically powerful, irresistible and influential until it becomes natural.  You'll see the difference right away!

How powerful, irresistible and influential is your marketing message?

In my last post I told you about the importance of having ONE very clear ideal client to focus your marketing efforts. When the light bulb turns on for the coaches I work with around this simple concept, it opens up a brand new perspective about how to attract and reach their ideal clients. I love sharing the reasons why having one ideal client is so important.

In this post, I want to give voice to how knowing your ONE ideal client intimately well helps you grow a very strong and profitable niche.

I define niche as having a clear and purposeful arena in which you serve your ideal client. Your ideal client group may expand over time but the work you do is what you really want to develop. A solid niche affords the coach the opportunity to use a comprehensive approach with your client, ultimately supporting the whole client. That's what coaching is all about!

Begin by understanding my Power of One strategy:

• Identify your one ideal client with great detail. Get to know your ideal client intimately well. Details matter!
• Clarify one core problem faced by your one ideal client. Get to the root of the problem rather than addressing symptoms caused by the problem.
• Determine the one solution to the problem offered by your coaching services.

As coaches, we know our client has more than one challenge she's facing so it doesn't end there.  As your relationship with your one ideal client grows, document additional problems that surface so you can revisit them and identify solutions you're able to offer with coaching.

Imagine identifying 20, 30, 40 or 50 presenting issues from your client that match the solutions you offer (your very specific coaching services). You have a product, program or service for every problem your ideal client has.  Cha-ching!!

Follow this 5-step niche-building strategy:

1. Create, market and fill a group coaching program based on the core problem identified by your one ideal client. With your ideal client clarity, you will attract multiple clients to your group coaching program who are equally ideal.
2. Match your coaching program to solve your ideal client's problem.  Your ideal client hires you as her coach because she wants change, help, support and resolution. You're well-equipped to handle that responsibility!
3. Turn your program into an information product. You're also creating passive revenue and there's nothing kewl-er than that!
4. Listen to the questions your ideal client asks and pay close attention to issues not resolved by the current program.  Opportunity is knocking and you get to be the one opening the door.
5. Develop new programs, products and services based on each new problem. You ARE the solutions-provider after all, right?

Start back at #1 for each problem-solution combination. This process is so repeatable and tenacity is the key!

I've been where you are now and know this strategy works. I believe in it so much that I specifically train coaches on implementing this strategy in the Certified Group Coach® Program. Yes, it works that well.

Try it for the next six months and you'll be able to see your profits are way up. Now you have a really strong niche  - a clear and purposeful arena in which you serve many of your ideal clients. Most importantly, you're loving the coaching business you've created filled with those ideal clients who love you and keep coming back to you for more.